Ascoli, sporting director Valentini: “A useful week, we are aware of the situation: we will respond”

For the rest of the championship week, the Sports Director Marco Valentini analyzed the moment of the team eight days before the end of the competition:

“Sometimes after a loss it is better to play right away, in our case it will be a profitable break, because we have worked with the technical staff not only from an operational point of view, this week we have worked as a group, as a team and as a club. to deepen because things have gone wrong in the last few games. Various issues were discussed with the staff and the team: there were three different defeats against Bari, Cagliari and Venezia; we also had a period of good play, but in the last three games we were also sued by episodes. We lost to Bari on penalties, and to Venice on a free kick, that is, on a dead ball. In the middle there was a match in Cagliari, in which the first 45 minutes were at a good level, but in the second half we did not fit well. Against an opponent like Cagliari we will lose, but not after the first half of this level. We came to some conclusions that I hope served to draw the line and restart and make the season finale the best thing for us, for the club and for the city.”

DS also explained the fluctuations in the team’s performance:

“In this championship, the teams that played in the playoffs last year, such as Brescia, Benevento, Perugia, Ascoli and Pisa, have experienced or are experiencing difficulties. Achieving an important result in the previous championship unknowingly could lead to the fact that we lost some of the mentality and humility. It is clear that an important result makes you feel better, more superficial, but B does not allow you to be modest, and as soon as you lower the bar, you can lose to anyone. If, on the other hand, you manage to keep these prerogatives consistently, you can win all the games and this team has shown it: they have won against Bari, Cagliari, in Venice, they have played well against Genoa, so that means the team has certain values, she has them. But in this championship, if these values ​​are not accompanied by the characteristics that I mentioned earlier, it is impossible to have consistent performance. Also, after the positive results – I mean 10 points in four races – the level of concentration subconsciously decreases, there is some superficiality, because you think you got out of the problem situation, but that’s where you come back. Earth. The lack of continuity, I think, is due to this approach.”

Improvement in the last 30 meters and possible change of form: are these the keys to the final push?

“This team was not built on a pre-set form, there are players who can interpret multiple decisions; Breda is an expert in the category and in difficult situations and will be able to make corrections that can be useful for the team, but apart from form, I think it’s a matter of attitude, unity, non-judgmentalism and humility, because this team won at 4-3- 1-2, at 3-5-2, at 4-3-3, so it doesn’t depend on the formation, but on how the matches are interpreted and how the details from are taken into account.

After Bottegin’s Venice, he said in the press center that he was concerned, and Dionisi said that “we are obliged to get out of this situation.” How important is the mental aspect and the contribution of the more experienced?

“I’m glad that two of our players showed concern, because it means that there is an understanding of the situation, this is a moment for responsibility and character. This team is made up of many young players, but the backbone is made up of experienced players who have also won several championships. I compare the pre-match against Brescia with Bari or Perugia (when Mr. Breda arrived). The team did not hit the bottom, but found themselves in a difficult situation. And this team has always reacted to difficult situations, even a year before my arrival, I am convinced that this time they will be able to do it.”

Belluschi and Gnahor injuries:

“Unfortunately, we had serious injuries this year: Gnaore in August and Leali next week. Unfortunately, injuries affect championships, especially if they happen to important players. Even our captain Dionisi had no succession due to physical problems, Forte himself came in January not in the best condition, but is now recovering. We had Gnaore and Belluschi out, the first one returned to the group but he didn’t have a minor injury because you have to be careful with the cruciate ligaments; Belluschi will check at the end of the month, we hope he will be back in April. The sooner we get them back, the better for the season finale.”

When asked if he expected Ascoli to be in their current standings at the start of the season, he replied:

“I expected a difficult championship, this year the level is very high, the teams below us are the teams that made the playoffs last season, one was relegated from Serie A, and SPAL was created for an important championship. Newly promoted teams such as Palermo, Bari and Modena are important areas that have been invested at a high level, the only surprise is Sudtirol, I knew the battle would be to the end. No team in this league is safe, it’s enough to lose two games to fall into the trap, and just win two or three to hook the teams above. We have to be realistic and aware of the situation – we are all like that – we must not lose sight of the match in Brescia, we have eight finals ahead of us, but stay tuned for the next one. This year we have been superficial in the management of several matches and this should never happen again, I tell the boys that if you do not win you must not lose and we could draw with Venice, Bari, Frosinone and Reggina, Modena in home, but we read and mishandled those matches, so we lost them. In the next 8 races we must be obsessed and perfect, when we fail to win, we must not lose, we can no longer afford it. If we had 4-5 more draws, we would now be dependent on the playoffs, not the playouts.”

No roadmap from here to the end:

“We didn’t draw up tables, our next final is against Brescia, we learned that it’s not the opponent that matters, but ourselves, we must meet the season finale with great unity, a spirit of self-sacrifice, with humility, with heart. , soul. If we put it all into this, together we will succeed, without thinking about tables, calendars, when we do the right things, we do well.”